PaulG
eXtreme
Spring. around May/June:
Summer in the Back Yard:
I purchased this kit from One Stop Gardens four years ago for $299US from Harbor Freight (http://www.harborfre...ouse-47712.html). It is one of the kits I see in the ad bar at the bottom of the page. In general, I have had great success with the kit, although there are a few points I'd like to bring up and see what others have experienced.
The kit's directions were pretty good, although they required careful reading at times. My dad (93 at the time!) and I were able to put the kit itself together in one day, with another day for building the foundation. We used 4"x4" posts laid down on landscape fabric for the frame. They were anchored with 24" pipes driven into the ground and fastened to the frame with brackets. The frame was filled with 3"-4" of half-to-quarter clean gravel for a nice dry and solid floor. I have photos of this project, and would be happy to email anyone pix of any part of the process they are interested in.
Probably the most glaring error was the mistaken measurement of the length of the footprint in the specifications by about 1 and three-quarters inches in the length. After we had completed the foundation frame and the floor frame of the greenhouse they didn't match. This after measuring three times according to the directions, so I know we didn't make an error there. Fortunately, scabbing a 2"x4" onto the end of the foundation frame corrected the problem almost exactly with a bit of routing the edge of the foundation frame. In the end it was a satisfactory solution, and pretty easy fix. The lesson learned is: assemble the floor frame of the kit before you build the foundation so you get the right length/width. Perhaps they have corrected the mistake by now, although I'd be surprised if it has been. The rest of the project went without a hitch. It has proven to be wind-resistant to 35 or 40 mph gusts that we experience on occasion here. Only one time did the wind suck a side panel out, and I happened to be standing there at the time. It was quite a sight to see a 2'x4' poly carbonate panel sailing through the air. Fortunately it landed in our own yard with no damage!
After three winters and four summers, the poly carbonate panels have experienced degradation, especially the roof panels. UV has made them brittle and eaten some holes in them, I have a feeling this is really low grade poly carbonate. When I removed the roof panels to clean them this summer, I had to be careful not to snap them, or even put my finger through one. I think I can eke out one or two more seasons, and then I'll have to replace the roof panels or come up with another kind of covering. I have searched out some suppliers and it looks like about $50US to $150US depending on supplier, and probably, quality of product, not including shipping, to replace if I buy and cut a 4'x8' sheet. I'm open to other solutions as well. I'm not married to polycarbonate panels, although they work well within the above mentioned limitations. Maybe there are other solutions folk on this forum could share.
One more thing I would mention is that the pre-cut roof panels were just about 1/4" too short to really cover their space, so the runoff didn't all go into the gutter. I have a friend with a greenhouse like this and he said the same thing when we compared notes. So I bought a piece of 2" flashing and laid it along the ridge top of the greenhouse. It extended enough to cover the little space between the frame and the panels at the top without interfering with the windows, so I could extend the panels correctly into the gutter. I suppose they were trying to save money but I would have been glad to pay $10 more for the green house and have panels that weren't a quarter inch too short!
All-in-all I would recommend this product if one is handy with tools and has time to tinker a bit. It is by far the most economical 'real' hobby greenhouse kit solution I found after extensive searching. I really didn't want a pvc and plastic sheeting type greenhouse.
Summer in the Back Yard:
I purchased this kit from One Stop Gardens four years ago for $299US from Harbor Freight (http://www.harborfre...ouse-47712.html). It is one of the kits I see in the ad bar at the bottom of the page. In general, I have had great success with the kit, although there are a few points I'd like to bring up and see what others have experienced.
The kit's directions were pretty good, although they required careful reading at times. My dad (93 at the time!) and I were able to put the kit itself together in one day, with another day for building the foundation. We used 4"x4" posts laid down on landscape fabric for the frame. They were anchored with 24" pipes driven into the ground and fastened to the frame with brackets. The frame was filled with 3"-4" of half-to-quarter clean gravel for a nice dry and solid floor. I have photos of this project, and would be happy to email anyone pix of any part of the process they are interested in.
Probably the most glaring error was the mistaken measurement of the length of the footprint in the specifications by about 1 and three-quarters inches in the length. After we had completed the foundation frame and the floor frame of the greenhouse they didn't match. This after measuring three times according to the directions, so I know we didn't make an error there. Fortunately, scabbing a 2"x4" onto the end of the foundation frame corrected the problem almost exactly with a bit of routing the edge of the foundation frame. In the end it was a satisfactory solution, and pretty easy fix. The lesson learned is: assemble the floor frame of the kit before you build the foundation so you get the right length/width. Perhaps they have corrected the mistake by now, although I'd be surprised if it has been. The rest of the project went without a hitch. It has proven to be wind-resistant to 35 or 40 mph gusts that we experience on occasion here. Only one time did the wind suck a side panel out, and I happened to be standing there at the time. It was quite a sight to see a 2'x4' poly carbonate panel sailing through the air. Fortunately it landed in our own yard with no damage!
After three winters and four summers, the poly carbonate panels have experienced degradation, especially the roof panels. UV has made them brittle and eaten some holes in them, I have a feeling this is really low grade poly carbonate. When I removed the roof panels to clean them this summer, I had to be careful not to snap them, or even put my finger through one. I think I can eke out one or two more seasons, and then I'll have to replace the roof panels or come up with another kind of covering. I have searched out some suppliers and it looks like about $50US to $150US depending on supplier, and probably, quality of product, not including shipping, to replace if I buy and cut a 4'x8' sheet. I'm open to other solutions as well. I'm not married to polycarbonate panels, although they work well within the above mentioned limitations. Maybe there are other solutions folk on this forum could share.
One more thing I would mention is that the pre-cut roof panels were just about 1/4" too short to really cover their space, so the runoff didn't all go into the gutter. I have a friend with a greenhouse like this and he said the same thing when we compared notes. So I bought a piece of 2" flashing and laid it along the ridge top of the greenhouse. It extended enough to cover the little space between the frame and the panels at the top without interfering with the windows, so I could extend the panels correctly into the gutter. I suppose they were trying to save money but I would have been glad to pay $10 more for the green house and have panels that weren't a quarter inch too short!
All-in-all I would recommend this product if one is handy with tools and has time to tinker a bit. It is by far the most economical 'real' hobby greenhouse kit solution I found after extensive searching. I really didn't want a pvc and plastic sheeting type greenhouse.
from the PacificNorthWest!
